The aim of this essay is to illustrate a modern phenomenon, the Olympic Games, by applying the ideas of Mircea Eliade concerning space, time and myth. This literature study is mainly divided in two parts, one descriptive and one analytic. In the first part Eliade?s ideas and some criticism, which has been pointed against his theoretical approaches as well as his character, are presented. In the second part an analysis is carried out, based on the previously presented ideas and elements essential for the Olympics; the idea of the Olympics, the place, the ceremonies, the competition and the concept of individual idolism.I have discussed what seems like gnostic tendencies in Eliade?s ideas, in the sense that both Eliade?s ideas and the concept of Gnosticism argue that knowledge is a necessary condition for salvation, as well as the fact that Eliade and his ideas have not always a pro-Christian approach.

The store manager can make great benefits of having an eye on how the staff works towards the customer, because the personnel is an important tool when competing with other stores. This paper is focusing on the part that relates to the staff in the store, which is one of the key tools in the competition for customers after the customer made it to the store. Many stores have guidelines which the staff should follow when they meet with customers. If the staff is too tightly controlled by these guidelines, customers can perceive the first encounter with the staff as artificial and as if the genuine friendliness does not exist. It is important that the staff looks at the individual customer and treat every customer in a personal way and that the staff can see the customer?s needs.

The globalization today has led to increased global competition. As companies seek out foreign markets in order to internationalize their operations, it is common that they encounter many cultural problems. Bribery and corruption is a common problem in international trade. Corruption is strongly linked to the national culture which means that corruption is accepted in differing degrees within different nations. This can be a problem when companies establish their operations in foreign markets.The purpose of this essay is to examine and analyze how companies act in a corrupt market without participating in corrupt activities.The authors have performed both a qualitative and a quantitative study.

Arvika Smide is a supplier to the automotive industry with a focus on advanced drop forgings including powertrain and bearings. The great experience and high quality is Arvika Smide?s speciality. Today's competition in the industries puts high demands on the efficiency where each company has a quest for perfection.Arvika Smide has been through the thesis of Karlstad University, called for a situation analysis of aftertreatment whose effectiveness has not been fully desirable. The department includes the production steps blasting, quality control and packaging.The thesis contains the results from the situation analysis and comparisons of the calculations for selected reference period Q4 2009th.

The information market is constantly changing. With new and improved information technology more people get access to more information faster. However, the number of people educated to handle information also increases. Business intelligence has for a long time been a well-known tool for companies to be competitive. Because of the increased access to information the competition between companies has intensified and more people have become aware of the advantages of business intelligence and how it can help them compete.

The Swedish retail business has been characterized by a small number of ruling distributors. These distributors have been affected negatively by the internationalization which has made it possible for international distributors to establish their stores in the Swedish market. These international distributors are focused on low price stores. Their establishment on the Swedish market has led to a decrease in market shares for the Swedish distributors, which has damaged their profitability. Another change that has affected the Swedish distributors is that the behavior and needs of the customers has changed.

iProspect is a global digital marketing agency and work primarily with search marketing. They were the first search engine marketing agency in the world when the company started up 1996 in Boston, Massachusetts, and the first in Sweden to offer services in search marketing after establishing themselves on the Swedish market the following year. iProspect can be found in the södermalm office in south central Stockholm. They are a comprehensive agency within search and offer everything from search engine optimization and sponsored links to advertising on social media. They?re goal is to lead developments in search marketing and to keep ahead of competition.

As a result of global competition, companies within the automotive industry are required to improve their production systems to achieve sustainable and competitive production. To attain operational excellence, companies have adopted concepts like lean and World Class Manufacturing (WCM).In order to deliver, companies need to increase the availability and reliability of production equipment. This demands focus on both operational and strategic maintenance, and efficient equipment acquisition and management. The main objective of this thesis is to identify processes and success factors that are necessary for improved maintenance performance. By conducting a case study and by performing a literature review, the following has been studied: 1) how companies within the automotive industry work with maintenance and maintenance strategies, 2) implementation of maintenance strategies, and 3) new acquisition and spare parts management for maintenance. The results show that basic maintenance concepts and related terms are well defined in the literature.

Problem: The Swedish wage-setting has changed since the time for the breakthrough of the industrialism until today. Before that, wages often consisted of perquisites or goods that could be exchanged against other goods. Rural people were often self-sufficient. In some cases the farmer owned the land, in other cases they where tenants. At the time for the breakthrough of industrialism the demand for similar labour were increased.

Background: Competition in the market for non-profit actors has increased significantly. More channels to reach potential donors have been designed, and ways to help has been extended. The industry is scrutinized with critical eyes because of the scandals that have emerged in recent years. It has contributed to making it possible to distinguish a negative trend regarding public trust in the sector. The market has therefore changed and the conditions for obtaining donations are different.Aim: The purpose of this thesis is to create a better understanding of how non-profit actors motivate individuals to donate money to their business.

The Swedish retail business has been characterized by a small number of ruling distributors. These distributors have been affected negatively by the internationalization which has made it possible for international distributors to establish their stores in the Swedish market. These international distributors are focused on low price stores. Their establishment on the Swedish market has led to a decrease in market shares for the Swedish distributors, which has damaged their profitability. Another change that has affected the Swedish distributors is that the behavior and needs of the customers has changed.

PurposeThe purpose of this thesis is to provide a deeper understanding of how e-commercecompanies within the fashion industry are working with lead times and illustrate andanalyse differences and similarities between companies.Research question- In which ways are e-commerce companies within the fashion industry working withshort lead times?MethodologyThis thesis is based on a qualitative research method in order to achieve a greaterunderstanding of the chosen topic, of how the chosen companies are operating and toprovide room to our own interpretations and reflections. Interviews through telephonewere used to gather the empirical data from six different e-commerce companies withinthe fashion industry.ConclusionsAfter completing the theoretical and empirical analysis it can be concluded that leadtimes are considered essential for all of the participating companies but there is adifference in which way they look at, and how they work with lead times. Somecompanies stressed that short lead times are an important aspect of competition andclaimed that this is something they are constantly working with. For others the balanceand matching of supply and demand was the most important factor rather than toachieve short lead times.

This thesis on the sustainable urban development has the intent to discuss the conservator?s position in alteration of the built environment. An essential component of the thesis consists of a case study in the form of an entry in an open architectural competition for the development of Furuset, an urban residential area in Norway. The thesis? discussion is based on two approaches to change and socio-economic transformations, considered being dominant within the heritage theory and practice: the production of ideas and great narratives and conservation as an instrumental tool.

A reform of higher education in Sweden in 1993 led to stiffer competitive climate among educational institutions. The reform meant that educational institutions now had the opportunity to plan their curriculum autonomously. Prior to the reform educational planning was restricted to the Swedish government. The new rules spelled a greater opportunity for educational institutions to profile themselves based on their educational offerings. The higher degree of competition means that marketing becomes increasingly important when recruiting new students.

The Swedish retail business has been characterized by a small number of ruling distributors. These distributors have been affected negatively by the internationalization which has made it possible for international distributors to establish their stores in the Swedish market. These international distributors are focused on low price stores. Their establishment on the Swedish market has led to a decrease in market shares for the Swedish distributors, which has damaged their profitability. Another change that has affected the Swedish distributors is that the behavior and needs of the customers has changed.